title: Establishment of Tunga trimamillata (Siphonaptera: Tungidae) in Brazil.
abstract: Tunga trimamillata is a species of sand flea occurring in Ecuador and Peru parasitizing cattle, goat, sheep, swine, and man. This is the first report of this species in Brazil, having been found on the hooves of cows in Barretos, São Paulo State, and Felixlândia, Minas Gerais State, and previously misidentified as Tunga penetrans. A previous report concerning Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris from Rio Novo, Minas Gerais State, may also be attributed to that species of sand flea, a possible the primary host. Given the large geographical distribution of T. trimamillata, the vast cattle population in Brazil, and the high number of individuals subject to the risk of tungiasis, the number of cases attributed to this sand flea will most likely increase over time.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Caixa Postal 486, Avenida Antônio Carlos, 6627, Campus UFMG, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais 31270-901, Brazil.
authors.forename: Pedro Marcos
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Linardi
authors.forename: Daniel Moreira
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: De Avelar
authors.forename: Elias Jorge Facury
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Filho
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002417:Cattle; D002418:Cattle Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D005534:Foot Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D006724:Hoof and Claw / Q000469:parasitology*; D006801:Humans; D058253:Tunga / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000145:classification / Q000502:physiology*; D058285:Tungiasis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*